Methods and devices for accessing a radio access network

ABSTRACT

A method is provided for enabling a User Equipment to access services provided by a Radio Access Network by configuring the User Equipment (UE) with configuration information which comprises rules for selecting one or more of a plurality of access procedures to be used by the UE for accessing services provided by the Radio Access Network which may be a New Radio/5G network. Access procedures may include a grant-based procedure; a grant-free procedure and a fallback procedure to be used in cases of failure of an initial access attempt. The rules may be based on the type of service required by the UE such as; transmission and/or reception of data, transmission and/or reception of a voice call, a request for System Information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a National Stage of International patent applicationPCT/CN2017/119215, filed on Dec. 28, 2017, which claims priority toforeign Great Britain patent application No. GB 1700161.1, filed on Jan.5, 2017, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in theirentirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to wirelesscommunication systems and in particular to devices and methods forenabling a wireless communication device, such as a User Equipment (UE)or mobile device to access a Radio Access Technology (RAT) or RadioAccess Network (RAN).

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication systems, such as the third-generation (3G) ofmobile telephone standards and technology are well known. Such 3Gstandards and technology have been developed by the Third GenerationPartnership Project (3GPP). The 3^(rd) generation of wirelesscommunications has generally been developed to support macro-cell mobilephone communications. Communication systems and networks have developedtowards a broadband and mobile system. The 3rd Generation PartnershipProject has developed the so-called Long Term Evolution (LTE) system,namely, an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunication System TerritorialRadio Access Network, (E-UTRAN), for a mobile access network where oneor more macrocells are supported by a base station known as an eNodeB oreNB (evolved NodeB). More recently, LTE is evolving further towards theso-called 5G or NR (new radio) systems where one or more cells aresupported by a base station known as a gNB.

The NR access technology aims to meet a broad range of use cases whichincludes enhanced mobile broadband, massive Machine Type Communications(MTC), and critical MTC. Operating frequency ranges of up to 100 GHz arecurrently under consideration for this new RAT. It is also envisagedthat the new RAT will be able to tightly interwork with existing LTEradio systems up to mobile network operator deployment. For initialaccess of an NR network by a UE, two initial access schemes have beenproposed. A first scheme comprises either a four-step contention-basedRandom Access procedure or a three-step non-contention based RandomAccess procedure, both procedures being similar to those used in LTEsystems. Basically, a UE transmits a Radio Resource Control (RRC)signalling message ahead of any data or other signalling message (e.g.Location Update) towards the Core Network.

A second scheme comprises two steps and is also known as grant-free(contention based) transmission. The UE may transmit a “small” (subjectto a threshold configuration for example) amount of data without the useof a RRC (Radio Resource Control) signalling message beforehand andwithout Radio Access preamble assignment. An optimized UE powerconsumption state “RRC_INACTIVE” is defined and the UE performs feweractions (e.g. radio measurements monitoring) compared with itsactivities in the “RRC_CONNECTED” state in LTE systems. In an NR systemand in the RRC_INACTIVE state, the UE will be mainly performing uplinkand/or downlink data transmission.

However, it has not yet been decided how such a proposed two-step schemeshould be configured for NR systems.

Another challenge is how to direct downlink data transmissions (from agNB to a UE) which are not in direct response to any uplink activitywhen the UE is in RRC_INACTIVE mode without the UE having to change toan RRC_CONNECTED state.

A further challenge concerns defining a fallback procedure for dealingwith the situation where a UE starts to access a NR network using theabove-mentioned two-step scheme but the procedure fails. This can happenowing to contention resolution failure after a number of re-attempts orbecause many UEs are simultaneously attempting access.

Another issue to address concerns the case where a UE needs certainSystem Information which is not currently being provided by the servingNR cell or by a proximate LTE cell (e.g. SI BlockX pertaining to someradio feature) and specifically, what should the UE use as an initialaccess procedure in order to inform the NR network that it needs toobtain the System Information. Compared to an LTE system, an NR systemmight not provide the full set of System Information in some NR cellsfor energy efficiency and signalling overhead reduction purposes.

A further question to resolve is how can the UE, at some point in time,improve its chances of successfully transmitting and receiving data i.e.have fewer transmission failures. For example, data transmission mayfail while the UE is in the RRC_INACTIVE state because of UE mobilityand the relaxation of measurement reporting in this state.

Another question to resolve concerns the case where an NR system isinterworking with an LTE system, given that user plane data is beinghandled by the NR system. If data needs to be transported in RRCsignalling, then how can the UE be aware that such data would be neededto be transmitted to the NR cell? Indeed in existing dual connectivityarrangements using two LTE cells or an LTE system interworking with aWi-Fi system (so called LTE WLAN Aggregation), any signalling istransmitted to one LTE cell only (or to the LTE cell for LWA). Henceunlike legacy system, signalling needs handling by two interfaces.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subjectmatter.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided amethod for enabling a wireless communication device to access servicesprovided by a Radio Access Network, the method comprising: configuringthe wireless communication device with configuration information whereinthe configuration information comprises rules for selecting one or moreof a plurality of access procedures to be used by the wirelesscommunication device for accessing services provided by the Radio AccessNetwork.

In one embodiment, the method includes transmitting the configurationinformation from a base station to the wireless communication device.

The access procedures may include at least one of the following; agrant-free procedure; a grant-based procedure; a grant-free procedurefor downlink only; a procedure including use of a signalling message; aprocedure not including use of a signalling message; a fallbackprocedure to be used in cases of failure of an initial access attempt;accessing an alternative Radio Access Network.

The signalling message may comprise a Radio Resource Control (RRC)message.

In some embodiments, the wireless communication device may inform thebase station of its capabilities with regard to which access proceduresit is capable of using. For instance, some wireless communicationdevices may not necessarily be capable of supporting a grant-free accessprocedure. In such cases, the rules are tailored to match the wirelesscommunication device's capabilities.

The rules may be based on a type of service required by the wirelesscommunication device. A type of service may include at least one of:transmission and/or reception of data; transmission and/or reception ofa voice call; transmission and/or reception of a signalling message; arequest for System Information; delay tolerant access; transmission of aUE Location Update; transmission of an exceptional event.

The rules may be in a format appropriate for the wireless communicationdevice's implementation.

In one embodiment, the rules dictate under what circumstances thewireless communication device should or should not obtain a grantallocation in advance of requesting access to services.

In one embodiment, the rules dictate that the wireless communicationdevice should obtain a grant allocation in advance of requesting accessto services in the event of failure of an attempted grant freeprocedure.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises establishing aninterworking interface between the Radio Access Network and analternative Radio Access Network. The Radio Access Network maybe a NewRadio (NR/5G) network and the alternative network may be an LTE network.

In one embodiment, the wireless communication device may include anindication of its current state in a data transmission to a basestation. The indication may or may not be requested by the Radio AccessNetwork.

In one embodiment, the base station may include an indication of atarget state in a data transmission to the wireless communicationdevice.

The wireless communication device may provide an indication of pendingdata transmission related information to a base station. Suchinformation may relate to a buffer size. Such information may beincluded in a data transmission from the wireless communication deviceto the base station. The information may or may not be requested by theradio access network.

Such indications provided to the base station by the wirelesscommunication device may be provided in a format as per the wirelesscommunication device's implementation.

In cases where the wireless communication device requires SystemInformation, the procedure may be based on a signalling message whichmay be a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message. The Radio Access Networkmay store System Information which has been requested by the wirelesscommunication device for future use in case it is requested again by thewireless communication device. System information may be required if thewireless communication device moves to another Radio Access Network orrequires a System Information update. A request for System Informationfrom the wireless communication device may be directed to the RadioAccess Network or to another Radio Access Network.

The invention permits the two-step (grant-free) access scheme describedabove to be implemented in a NR/5G system under certain circumstances.Rules for using the two-step scheme according to the type of servicerequired can result in a reduction of access failures. Indeed the moreaccesses that are attempted using this grant-free (contention based)scheme, the higher the probability of failure. Application of the rulesin accordance with the invention can, advantageously restrict usage ofthis two-step scheme. In cases where there is an interworking interfacebetween an NR system and an LTE system, the rules allow a distributionof the different access procedures between systems. For example therules may allow offloading signalling from one system to another, forexample from an NR system to an LTE system. This can be advantageousbecause signalling is less latency-sensitive than data.

Advantageously, the invention also permits the transmission of downlinkdata while the wireless communication device is in RRC_INACTIVE mode.This can be achieved by the wireless communication device indicating tothe base station (in a message) its current state (specifically thetarget RRC state) along with its data transmissions. Alternatively, thiscan be achieved by the base station indicating to the wirelesscommunication device (in a message), along with its data transmissions,a target state (specifically the target RRC state) to which the UEshould be moving to. By encapsulating the data in such a message, an RRCsignalling message overhead can be avoided while keeping synchronisationof the RRC state between the wireless communication device and the RadioAccess Network. This can also result in fewer data transmission failuresas the reception of a dynamic indication of the wireless communicationsdevice's state along with the data allows the Radio Access Network todecide whether or not it would be best to instruct the wirelesscommunication device to change to a more robust state where a greateramount of data can be transmitted without failure (as per beingallocated adequate grants). This dynamic indication of RRC state alongwith the data transmission also results in reducing the latency to moveto such a state. Minimising the latency in moving between RRC states (inparticular RRC_INACTIVE and RRC_CONNECTED), is a requirement for an NRsystem. In an LTE system, moving between RRC states requires aconfiguration process including a three-message exchange between the RANand the wireless communication device.

Advantageously, the rules may permit the wireless communication deviceto timely recover from a failure of a two-step (grant-free) accessattempt as the wireless communication device is not able to know whethera further two-step attempt would fail or not. The rules may dictate thatthe wireless communication device selects a grant-based access procedurefollowing failure of one or more attempts at a grant-free accessprocedure.

Advantageously, application of the rules by the wireless communicationdevice can provide it with some flexibility for handling SI requests.For instance, the rules may permit use of a two-step (grant-free) or afour-step (grant-based) access procedure for requesting SystemInformation. The network receiving the request may memorise the requestto provide specific SI blocks in order to avoid the wirelesscommunication device having to request them again when such blocks arenot already provided to it. In a case where an interworking interfacehas been established between the radio access network (for example NR)and another radio access network (for example LTE) the rules may allowoffloading System Information requests (which are less latency-sensitivethan data) from the NR network to the LTE network

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a basestation arranged to transmit configuration information to a wirelesscommunication device wherein the configuration information comprisesrules for selecting one or more of a plurality of access procedures tobe used by the wireless communication device for accessing servicesprovided by a Radio Access Network.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided awireless communication device configured with configuration informationcomprising rules for selecting one or more of a plurality of accessprocedures to be used by the wireless communication device for accessingservices provided by a Radio Access Network.

The wireless communication device may be adapted to receive theconfiguration information from a base station.

The wireless communication device may use the rules for selecting one ormore of said plurality of access procedures to be used for accessingservices based on its implementation i.e. without receiving theconfiguration information from a base station.

The wireless communication unit may adapt the rules for selecting one ormore of said plurality of access procedures to be used for accessingservices based on results of previous access attempts. For example,awareness of previous grants allocated to the wireless communicationunit by the radio access network, and/or awareness of uplink radiosignal conditions, and/or location information change can assist thewireless communication unit in choosing the most appropriate accessprocedure (i.e. grant-free or grant-based) to use.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided anon-transitory computer readable medium having computer readableinstructions stored thereon for execution by a processor to perform themethod according to the first aspect.

The non-transitory computer readable medium may comprise at least onefrom a group consisting of: a hard disk, a CD-ROM, an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, a Read Only Memory, a ProgrammableRead Only Memory, an Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory, EPROM, anElectrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory and a Flash memory.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further details, aspects and embodiments of the invention will bedescribed, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings.Elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity andhave not necessarily been drawn to scale. Like reference numerals havebeen included in the respective drawings to ease understanding.

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of Radio Access Networks operatingin accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a message sequence chart illustrating a first example of asequence of operations for accessing Radio Access Network services;

FIG. 3 is a message sequence chart illustrating a second example of asequence of operations for accessing Radio Access Network services; and

FIG. 4 is a message sequence chart illustrating a third example of asequence of operations for accessing Radio Access Network services.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Those skilled in the art will recognise and appreciate that thespecifics of the examples described are merely illustrative of someembodiments and that the teachings set forth herein are applicable in avariety of alternative settings.

FIG. 1 shows a Radio Access Network (RAN) 100 which in this example is a5G/NR network. The NR RAN 100 may include a number of gNBs, one, 101,being shown in the Figure and other network entities (not shown). ThegNB 101 communicates with a User Equipment (UE) 102 and supports arespective cell 103. The gNB 101 performs the function (amongst others)of that of a base station. The UE 102 may be for example, a cell phone,smart phone, wireless modem, laptop computer or other wirelesscommunication device. The NR RAN 100 is proximate to another RAN whichin this embodiment is an LTE network 104. The LTE network 104 mayinclude a number of eNBs, one, 105 being shown in the Figure and othernetwork entities (not shown). The eNB 105 supports a respective cell 106which may at least partially overlap with the cell 103 of the gNB 101.In this embodiment an interworking interface is established between thegNB 101 and the eNB 105. The UE 102 is capable of communicating witheither the gNB 101 or the eNB 105 or both.

Referring now to FIG. 2, at 201 an interworking interface is establishedbetween the gNB 101 and the eNB 105 of the systems described above withreference to FIG. 1. At 202, the gNB sends to the UE (102 of FIG. 1)configuration information for initial access (of the UE 102) to the NRsystem via the gNB for the transmission of data with or without the useof RRC signalling or via the eNB with signalling. At 203, the UEreceives the configuration information and takes this into account whenselecting an access procedure. At 204, based on the configurationreceived, the UE chooses to use LTE for access and so at 205 the UEtransmits NR signalling to the eNB. At 206, the eNB handles the receivedNR signalling on behalf of the gNB. Alternatively, at 207 based on theconfiguration received, the UE chooses whether to use RRC signalling ornot. If it chooses to use RRC signalling, it can embed data in thesignalling and send this, at 208, to the gNB. At 209, if the eNB knowsthat there is more data to come from the UE, then the eNB may decide torequest that the UE change the RRC state along with the data. At 210 amessage is sent from the gNB to the UE and including a target RRC statealong with the data transmission.

Referring now to FIG. 3, at 301, the UE (102 of FIG. 1) sends to the gNB(102 of FIG. 1) capability information. In this example, the capabilityinformation informs the gNB that the UE 102 is capable of performing agrant-free access procedure. At 302, the gNB sends configurationinformation to the UE which comprises rules to assist the UE in choosingone of a plurality of access procedures that the UE may use depending oncertain conditions (for example the type of service required). In thisexample, the rules may direct the UE to perform one of the followingprocedures: to use a grant-free procedure when transmission of data isrequired and to use a fallback procedure comprising the use of agrant-based procedure in the case where the grant-free procedure fails;or to use a grant-based procedure; or to use a grant-free procedure fordownlink only. At 303, the UE takes into account the configurationreceived when initiating access to the NR RAN. If the UE wishes totransmit data and the rules dictate that a grant-free procedure may beused, then at 304, the UE chooses this access procedure and at 305 sendsa data transmission to the gNB without any grant provision. If, at 306the UE notices that the grant-free procedure has failed, then at 307, asdictated by the rules, the UE falls back to the grant-based procedureand at 308 requests a grant provision from the gNB. The UE may deducethat the grant-free procedure has failed if it received noacknowledgement from the gNB. Failure can result because of concurrentaccess attempts from other UE's in the cell 103. The request for a grantprovision is followed by transmission of the grant provision at 309 fromthe gNB to the UE. Once the UE has received the grant provision, it cantransmit its data based thereon at 310. Alternatively, the rules maydictate that the UE choose always to transmit data based on a grantprovision. In this case, at 311 uses the grant-based procedure. In thiscase, at 312 steps 308-310 as above are carried out. If the rulesdictate that the grant-free procedure should be used for downlink only(at 313), then a grant provision for downlink is sent from the gNB tothe UE at 314 and at 315 the UE makes a data transmission towards thegNB based on the received grant provision.

An advantage of indicating the use of the grant-free procedure fordownlink only is to reduce latency between the UE and the gNB. The gNBhas already allocated resources for continuous downlink datatransmissions to the UE since the gNB has knowledge about the size ofthe downlink transmissions. The UE does not need to request grantallocation by performing a grant-based procedure with or withoutcontention. To achieve a similar advantage in the uplink, the gNB needsto know the average size of the uplink transmissions. The UE canindicate this information to the gNB. Then the gNB can pre-allocate thegrant for uplink transmissions and configure the UE to use thegrant-free procedure.

An advantage of indicating the use of the grant-based procedure is toreduce the latency in cases of variable sizes of data transmissions. Ina case where the size of data transmissions happens to temporarilyexceed a threshold for data transmission for a fixed allocated grant,then the UE splits the data into smaller data transmissions and avoids arequest for grant allocation. Temporarily exceeding the threshold canhappen in the scenario of data bursts from the application (e.g. IP)layers. The advantage of indicating the use of a grant-based and agrant-free procedure is to reduce the number of small data transmissionsfor such a scenario where the UE indicates the size of grant to beallocated by the gNB, thereby reducing the latency of the feedback frompeer application layers.

The request for grant provision at step 308 can be implemented as abuffer size indication from the UE to the gNB to enable the latter toallocate an adequate grant size. The benefit of this is to avoidmultiple small data transmissions and allow a larger data transmissioninstead. The gNB can also trigger the UE to provide such a buffer sizeindication. An indication of the buffer size for pending data fortransmission can also be sent along with data. This allows the UE tooptimise its processing and so reduces power consumption.

Referring now to FIG. 4, at 401 an interworking interface is establishedbetween the gNB 101 and the eNB 105 of the systems described above withreference to FIG. 1. At 402, the gNB sends to the UE (102 of FIG. 1)configuration information for initial access (of the UE 102) to the NRor LTE network for requesting NR System Information (SI) with or withoutRRC signalling via the gNB or via the eNB. At 403, the UE receives theconfiguration information and takes this into account when selecting anaccess procedure. At 404, based on the configuration received, if“initial access to LTE” is not present in the configuration, then the UEtransmits, at 405, a request for NR SI with or without signalling. Ifthe UE chooses to use signalling, then at 405 it embeds the SI requestin the RRC signalling. At 406, the gNB memorises the SI requested by theUE and at 407 provides the SI requested by dedicated RRC signalling. If,alternatively, “initial access to LTE” is present in the configurationinformation, then at 408 the UE may choose to transmit its request forNR System Information to the eNB of the LTE network. In this case, at409 the UE sends the NR SI request to the eNB. At 410, the eNB memorisesthe SI requested by the UE and at 411 sends the requested NR SIinformation to the UE.

The signal processing functionality of the embodiments of the inventionespecially the gNB and the UE may be achieved using computing systems orarchitectures known to those who are skilled in the relevant art.Computing systems such as, a desktop, laptop or notebook computer,hand-held computing device (PDA, cell phone, palmtop, etc.), mainframe,server, client, or any other type of special or general purposecomputing device as may be desirable or appropriate for a givenapplication or environment can be used. The computing system can includeone or more processors which can be implemented using a general orspecial-purpose processing engine such as, for example, amicroprocessor, microcontroller or other control module.

The computing system can also include a main memory, such as randomaccess memory (RAM) or other dynamic memory, for storing information andinstructions to be executed by a processor. Such a main memory also maybe used for storing temporary variables or other intermediateinformation during execution of instructions to be executed by theprocessor. The computing system may likewise include a read only memory(ROM) or other static storage device for storing static information andinstructions for a processor.

The computing system may also include an information storage systemwhich may include, for example, a media drive and a removable storageinterface. The media drive may include a drive or other mechanism tosupport fixed or removable storage media, such as a hard disk drive, afloppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, acompact disc (CD) or digital video drive (DVD) read or write drive (R orRW), or other removable or fixed media drive. Storage media may include,for example, a hard disk, floppy disk, magnetic tape, optical disk, CDor DVD, or other fixed or removable medium that is read by and writtento by media drive. The storage media may include a computer-readablestorage medium having particular computer software or data storedtherein.

In alternative embodiments, an information storage system may includeother similar components for allowing computer programs or otherinstructions or data to be loaded into the computing system. Suchcomponents may include, for example, a removable storage unit and aninterface, such as a program cartridge and cartridge interface, aremovable memory (for example, a flash memory or other removable memorymodule) and memory slot, and other removable storage units andinterfaces that allow software and data to be transferred from theremovable storage unit to computing system.

The computing system can also include a communications interface. Such acommunications interface can be used to allow software and data to betransferred between a computing system and external devices. Examples ofcommunications interfaces can include a modem, a network interface (suchas an Ethernet or other NIC card), a communications port (such as forexample, a universal serial bus (USB) port), a PCMCIA slot and card,etc. Software and data transferred via a communications interface are inthe form of signals which can be electronic, electromagnetic, andoptical or other signals capable of being received by a communicationsinterface medium.

In this document, the terms ‘computer program product’,‘computer-readable medium’ and the like may be used generally to referto tangible media such as, for example, a memory, storage device, orstorage unit. These and other forms of computer-readable media may storeone or more instructions for use by the processor comprising thecomputer system to cause the processor to perform specified operations.Such instructions, generally referred to as ‘computer program code’(which may be grouped in the form of computer programs or othergroupings), when executed, enable the computing system to performfunctions of embodiments of the present invention. Note that the codemay directly cause a processor to perform specified operations, becompiled to do so, and/or be combined with other software, hardware,and/or firmware elements (e.g., libraries for performing standardfunctions) to do so.

In an embodiment where the elements are implemented using software, thesoftware may be stored in a computer-readable medium and loaded intocomputing system using, for example, removable storage drive. A controlmodule (in this example, software instructions or executable computerprogram code), when executed by the processor in the computer system,causes a processor to perform the functions of the invention asdescribed herein.

Furthermore, the inventive concept can be applied to any circuit forperforming signal processing functionality within a network element. Itis further envisaged that, for example, a semiconductor manufacturer mayemploy the inventive concept in a design of a stand-alone device, suchas a microcontroller of a digital signal processor (DSP), orapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) and/or any othersub-system element.

It will be appreciated that, for clarity purposes, the above descriptionhas described embodiments of the invention with reference to a singleprocessing logic. However, the inventive concept may equally beimplemented by way of a plurality of different functional units andprocessors to provide the signal processing functionality. Thus,references to specific functional units are only to be seen asreferences to suitable means for providing the described functionality,rather than indicative of a strict logical or physical structure ororganisation.

Aspects of the invention may be implemented in any suitable formincluding hardware, software, firmware or any combination of these. Theinvention may optionally be implemented, at least partly, as computersoftware running on one or more data processors and/or digital signalprocessors or configurable module components such as FPGA devices. Thus,the elements and components of an embodiment of the invention may bephysically, functionally and logically implemented in any suitable way.Indeed, the functionality may be implemented in a single unit, in aplurality of units or as part of other functional units.

Although the present invention has been described in connection withsome embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the specific formset forth herein. Rather, the scope of the present invention is limitedonly by the accompanying claims. Additionally, although a feature mayappear to be described in connection with particular embodiments, oneskilled in the art would recognize that various features of thedescribed embodiments may be combined in accordance with the invention.In the claims, the term ‘comprising’ does not exclude the presence ofother elements or steps.

Furthermore, although individually listed, a plurality of means,elements or method steps may be implemented by, for example, a singleunit or processor. Additionally, although individual features may beincluded in different claims, these may possibly be advantageouslycombined, and the inclusion in different claims does not imply that acombination of features is not feasible and/or advantageous. Also, theinclusion of a feature in one category of claims does not imply alimitation to this category, but rather indicates that the feature isequally applicable to other claim categories, as appropriate.

Furthermore, the order of features in the claims does not imply anyspecific order in which the features must be performed and in particularthe order of individual steps in a method claim does not imply that thesteps must be performed in this order. Rather, the steps may beperformed in any suitable order. In addition, singular references do notexclude a plurality. Thus, references to ‘a’, ‘an’, ‘first’, ‘second’,etc. do not preclude a plurality.

Although the present invention has been described in connection withsome embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the specific formset forth herein. Rather, the scope of the present invention is limitedonly by the accompanying claims. Additionally, although a feature mayappear to be described in connection with particular embodiments, oneskilled in the art would recognise that various features of thedescribed embodiments may be combined in accordance with the invention.In the claims, the term ‘comprising’ or “including” does not exclude thepresence of other elements.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method for enabling a wirelesscommunication device to access services provided by a Radio AccessNetwork, the method comprising: configuring the wireless communicationdevice with configuration information wherein the configurationinformation comprises rules for selecting one or more of a plurality ofaccess procedures to be used by the wireless communication device foraccessing services provided by the Radio Access Network and wherein theaccess procedures include at least one of the following: a grant-basedprocedure; and/or a procedure including use of a signalling message;wherein the wireless communication device is arranged to adapt the rulesfor selecting one or more of said plurality of access procedures to beused for accessing services based on results of previous accessattempts.
 2. The method of claim 1 including, at the wirelesscommunication device, informing a base station of its capabilities withregard to which access procedures it is capable of using.
 3. The methodof claim 2 including transmitting the configuration information from abase station to the wireless communication device wherein theconfiguration information is tailored to match the capabilities of thewireless communication device.
 4. The method of claim 1 includingtransmitting the configuration information from a base station to thewireless communication device.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein thegrant-based procedure is a procedure where a grant is provisioned from abase station to the wireless communication device.
 6. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the signalling message comprises a Radio ResourceControl message.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein the rules are based ona type of service required by the wireless communication device.
 8. Themethod of claim 7 wherein the type of service includes at least one of:transmission and/or reception of data; transmission and/or reception ofa voice call; transmission and/or reception of a signalling message; arequest for System Information; delay tolerant access; transmission of aLocation Update; transmission of an exceptional event.
 9. The method ofclaim 1 comprising, at the wireless communication device, including anindication of its current state in a data transmission to a basestation.
 10. The method of claim 1 including establishing aninterworking interface between the Radio Access Network and analternative radio access network.
 11. The method of claim 1 wherein theRadio Access Network is a New Radio/5G network.
 12. A non-transitorycomputer readable medium having computer readable instructions storedthereon for execution by a processor to perform the method according toclaim
 1. 13. The method of claim 1 wherein the access procedures includeat least one of the following: a grant-free procedure; a grant-freeprocedure for downlink only; a procedure not including use of asignalling message; a fallback procedure to be used in cases of failureof an initial access attempt; and/or accessing an alternative radioaccess network.
 14. A wireless communication device comprising: at leastone processor implemented by the wireless communication device andconfigured with configuration information wherein the configurationinformation comprises rules for selecting one or more of a plurality ofaccess procedures to be used by the wireless communication device foraccessing services provided by the Radio Access Network and wherein theaccess procedures include at least one of the following: a grant-basedprocedure; and/or a procedure including use of a signalling message;wherein the wireless communication device is arranged to adapt the rulesfor selecting one or more of said plurality of access procedures to beused for accessing services based on results of previous accessattempts.